AZSTA Partnership Provides Playground Upgrades

Before classes at Archway Veritas let out for summer break, the academy celebrated their brand-new playground equipment with a special ribbon cutting ceremony. This enhancement, along with a few others across our Archway academies was made possible by the generous support of the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority (AZSTA), who provides grant funding to promote youth sports and recreation, and to encourage physical activity within Maricopa County.

“We want to thank our long-standing partnership with the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority, who has generously partnered with us over the last 10 years and helped us create this beautiful new playground for all of our students, coupled with our generous families who support our Community Investment campaigns all year,” shared Major Gifts Officer Haley Kucharo. “We just want to say thank you guys so much and we hope the children enjoy the playground.”

According to Headmaster Megan Optiz, the new structure will benefit over 720 students at the K-5 academy. “The students are so excited to be able to climb, hang on our climbing structure, and go down the slides. We now have two slides instead of one and all the different games they can play. So, it’s going to be very exciting to have this for the future,” she explained. Opitz is particularly excited about the edition of the new shade structure, adding extra protection from the Arizona sun. “Now that we have this shade structure here, it really provides a great place for our kids to play daily.”

But Archway Veritas is not the only academy who will begin the 2026-27 school year with a playground upgrade. AZSTA also supported the purchase and installation of playground shade structures on Archway Arete’s campus in Gilbert, the purchase and installation of new playground equipment and shade structures on Archway Chandler’s campus, and the purchase and installation of an outdoor basketball court and hoops on the Archway Trivium campus in Goodyear.

Great Hearts Academies has valued its partnership with AZSTA over the years. Through their support, our campuses have benefited from many important upgrades and enhancements. While their contributions have made a meaningful impact, these projects are only possible because of the continued generosity of our school community through Community Investment. This annual fund covers the gap between what we need to deliver the top-tier education that your children deserve and what we receive from public funding. Learn more about Community Investment at https://www.greatheartsamerica.org/support-us/community-investment/.

While these new structures stand quietly on our campuses over the summer, the school bells will soon ring again when students return for the new school year, filling the classrooms, halls, and these new structures with lots of laughter, activity, and joy. We are grateful to AZSTA and all those who contributed to making these projects a reality. There is no doubt that these improvements will have a lasting impact on both current and future generations of young scholars.

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